''Rājamati'' () is a 1995 film be made in

Nepal Bhasa Newar (), or Newari and known officially in Nepal as Nepal Bhasa, is a Sino-Tibetan language spoken by the Newar people, the indigenous inhabitants of Nepal Mandala, which consists of the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding regions in Nep ...

. The first Nepal Bhasa movie is '' Silu'', released in 1987. ''Rajamati'' is about a luckless

Newar Newar (; new, नेवार, endonym: Newa; new, नेवा, Pracalit script:) or Nepami, are the historical inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley and its surrounding areas in Nepal and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation ...

girl named Rajamati from

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Provinces of Nepal, Province , subdivision_name1 ...

who gets involved in a series of failed relationships. The story is based on a 200-year-old ballad popular in Newar society. Rajamati was born at Taha Nani in Itum Baha, a historical and sacred neighborhood in central Kathmandu.

Cast

*Hisila Maharjan as Rajamati Shakya * Shree Krishna Shrestha as Ratna *Maniraj Lawot * Madan Krishna Shrestha as Taremam Shakya (Rajamati's father) * Hari Bansha Acharya *Ganesh Ram Lachhi * Subhadra Adhikari as Ratna's mother *Rajendra Khadgi as Chikacha

The song

The song " Rajamati" is one of the most popular songs of the Newars. It also gained fame because it was played by a guard of honor during the state visit of Prime Minister Jung Bahadur to England in 1850.Lienhard, Siegfried (1992). ''Songs of Nepal: An Anthology of Nevar Folksongs and Hymns.'' New Delhi: Motilal Banarsidas. . Page 42. Maestro Seturam Shrestha made the first recording of the song on

gramophone A phonograph, in its later forms also called a gramophone (as a trademark since 1887, as a generic name in the UK since 1910) or since the 1940s called a record player, or more recently a turntable, is a device for the mechanical and analogu ...

disc in Kolkata in 1908.

Prem Dhoj Pradhan Prem Dhoj Pradhan (6 June 1938 – 6 May 2021) was a Nepalese musician. He was a singer, composer, and regional playback singer. He sang in the two major languages of Nepal: Newari and Nepali. He was also known as the Golden Voice and King of R ...

composed and sang Rajamti song in his own style. Prem Dhoj Pradhan sang Rajamati in various stages and functions for many many years made it very popular. He recorded ''Rajamati'' song in 1962 in Calcutta Indian, on

78 rpm A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts near ...

. In the song, a love-struck man tells how much he desires Rajamati, and that he will go to Kashi (

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

) and become an ascetic if he doesn't get to marry her. Then he describes her curly hair, long eyes, fair complexion and moles on the cheek. The song then mentions three sunken waterspouts in Kathmandu, Thahiti uptown, Kwahiti at the southern end and Maruhiti in the center (near

Kathmandu Durbar Square Kathmandu Durbar Square (''Basantapur Durbar Kshetra'') is located in front of the old royal palace of the former Kathmandu Kingdom and is one of three Durbar (royal palace) Squares in the Kathmandu Valley in Nepal, all of which are UNESC ...

); and how Rajamati, who had gone to Maruhiti to fetch water, tripped on a large stone and fell flat on her back. The singer then laments how Rajamati was given away in marriage over her protestations because of a devious matchmaker, and how she ended up in a house without a decorative window.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rajamati Newar Newar-language films 1995 films 1990s musical films